Iodine Deficiency Disorders
Intellectual capital is a crucial resource for national and international development. Yet a nutritional deficiency that can be readily prevented continues to rob whole generations of hundreds of millions of IQ points. Iodine deficiency is the single greatest cause of preventable mental retardation in the world today. For lack of a modicum of iodine in the diets, 1.6 billion people world wide are at risk of the diminished mental and physical capacities of iodine deficiency disorders, as this range of afflictions is called.
Functional Consequences of Deficiencies
Poor eye-hand coordination; Partial paralysis; deaf-mutism; Dwarfism; Facial and Physical deformity; Cretinism; Neuro-logical damage; Goitre; Lassitude; Mental retardation; Clumsiness; Torpor; Muscular rigidity and other disabilities.
For more salt related information read the following articles:
Salt for Human Nutrition
Salt: In the Oceans and in Humans
The Solution
Salt Iodization
If iodized salt containing the required amount of iodine is widely available and consumed in a community, there will, in a short space of time, be no further births of cretins or children with subnormal mental or physical development which can be attributed to iodine deficiency. Children will be more active and perform better in school.
Iodine
What
is Iodine?It is a mineral that is found in soil and in the sea that the human body needs for optimum brain and physical growth.
Why we add Iodine to salt
The human body needs 120-140 micrograms of iodine per day. Salt producers in South Africa are obliged by law to add 35-65 milligrams iodine per kilogram of salt.
Iodine for better health
The main source of iodine is the sea and therefore seafood such as fish, shellfish and edible seaweed are an excellent source of iodine. Iodine is also found in small amounts in our drinking water. In areas where seafood is not available and where iodated salt is not used, the iodine content of the soil determines the iodine intake. Iodine shortages are normally found in mountainous areas.
A shortage of iodine in the diet can lead to goitres, or enlarged thyroid. If the thyroid enlarges too much, it can hamper breathing and swallowing. A shortage of iodine can also lead to cretinism and retarded physical growth. The most critical time a human being needs iodine is in the foetal stage and for young children.
Micronutrients
Other Micronutrients
These are small nutrients needed by the body in small amounts, for specific physiological function that are essential for normal growth, development and micro maintenance of life.
The body can NOT synthesize them, therefore supplements must be taken.
Vitamin A, functions of
Vision mechanism; Gene expression; Growth, Developments and Maintenance of epithelial cellular integrity, and Immune functions.
Functional Consequences of Deficiencies
Eye problems - night blindness
Increased mortality
Loss of epithelial integrity
Iron, functions of
Hemoglobin formation
Oxygen transport
Cellular oxidation
The possible causes of deficiency
Inadequate intake; Low bio-availability; Parasitic & other infections; Increased blood loss in women; Inherited disorders; Chronic infections e.g. HIV, etc.
Functional Consequences of Deficiencies
Maternal and foetal morbidity; Mortality; Impairs development in young children, and Reduces working capacity of adults.
